Posts claiming Philippine VP Robredo 'rejected supporter's selfie request' share misleadingly edited video

The 20-second video was shared on Facebook here on February 15. It was viewed over 37,000 times.

The clip shows a campaign rally where a young supporter jumps on Robredo's vehicle in an attempt to take a selfie with her. A security staff is seen asking the supporter to get off the vehicle.

"Their 'mother' is so fake, all she wants is to wave at the crowd, and the woman who just wanted to take a photo with her was told to get off," reads the video's Tagalog-language caption.

"Mother" refers to Robredo, who called herself "mother of the country" when she announced her presidential bid in October 2021.

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Screenshot of the misleading post taken February 23, 2022.

The video circulated after the Philippines kicked off its three-month election campaign season in early February.

Incumbent Vice President Robredo has since toured different parts of the country to rally support for her presidential bid.

She is polling at a distant second behind rival Ferdinand Marcos Jr who has a massive social media campaign cranking up support.

The video was shared alongside a similar claim on Facebook here and here.

Comments on the posts suggest people were misled.

"She just wanted one selfie but you rejected her request," one commented.

"I thought [Robredo] was for the poor, [the supporter] held on to her but she refused to take a selfie," another wrote.

The video has been misleadingly edited.

Keyword searches found it was taken from a longer video originally posted on Facebook on February 10.

In the longer video, Robredo can be seen actually reaching out to help the supporter back on the vehicle after she was initially told to get off.

The supporter -- wearing a light pink shirt that is the colour associated with Robredo's campaign -- is seen snapping a selfie with the presidential hopeful at the 40-second mark.

Later in the video, Robredo allows another group of supporters onto the vehicle for photos.

Below are screenshots from the longer video showing Robredo taking selfies with the woman and with other supporters.

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AFP reached out to the video uploader who identified himself as Michael Imperial.

In response to the misleading posts, Imperial told AFP: "The video [they] posted is edited. [They] intentionally removed the part where Leni Robredo stretched out her hand and pulled the girl onto the vehicle."

He said he had taken the video during Robredo's motorcade rally on February 9 in Albay province, about 460 kilometres south of the capital Manila.

Local newspaper Manila Bulletin reported about the incident here.

AFP has debunked other misleading claims about the Philippine presidential election campaign here and here.